


Just Be Happy

by Musical_Fandom



Series: Bad End Oneshots [1]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Bad end, Gen, Implied/Referenced Brainwashing, Kinda?, Memory Alteration, Persona 5: The Royal, Psychological Horror, Royal's Bad End, Suicidal Thoughts, Violent Thoughts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:07:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27764242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Musical_Fandom/pseuds/Musical_Fandom
Summary: Akechi's struggles with Maruki's new reality.
Series: Bad End Oneshots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2168133
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	Just Be Happy

Akechi's body seemed to move without his input sometimes. Ever since that bastard Maruki had imposed his fake reality on the world, nothing could be trusted. Not even himself sometimes.

There he was, living in a reality he never wanted as someone else's puppet. He would think it was his own personal hell if everyone was right there with him. They weren't the ones suffering though. No, everyone was disgustingly happy all the time. If Akechi had to see Wakaba Isshiki walking around with her family one more time he swore he would snap and kill her again. He found a sick pleasure in the idea of killing the woman in front of her loving daughter. Maybe he could get someone else to feel something real for once.

Akechi found himself riding his bike to LeBlanc. ~~Akira~~ _Kurusu_ wanted him there and what Kurusu wanted, he got. Everyone got what they wanted all the time, himself being the sole exception. Akechi briefly wondered what would happen if he steered his bike into oncoming traffic. A useless thought, he couldn't even if he wanted to. Even if he did, both him and any passengers in the car would be miraculously unharmed. Maruki wouldn't let him go that easily.

As he stepped in LeBlanc he noticed the place was decorated with streamers and other useless things. All the former thieves including ~~Kasumi~~ Sumire were there waiting for him, waiting for his reaction. It seemed to be some sort of party. He didn't know what the occasion was but it was definitely something he cared very little about. As much as he wanted to, he was physically unable to suppress the smile that formed on his face.

Akechi scanned the room looking for the traitor himself. He knew Kurusu was lucid most of time and often enjoyed seeing the guilt on his face whenever he was forced to act out of character by the fake reality. It was a small joy but it was his own. This reality would never force him to find solace in something so cruel. When he picked out Kurusu's face from the nearly dozen teens in front of him he was disappointed. It seemed today Kurusu was lost in the fantasy. The frown he felt refused to form on his face so there he stood, smiling like an idiot.

The day was mercifully quick. Akechi managed to wrestle back enough control over his body to make up some excuse for why he had to leave early. Before he could leave he was forced to promise he would come back another day. If it was up to him, he would never set foot in Tokyo again after all he'd been through.

Akechi felt like he was losing his mind recently. As days passed he seemed to have less and less control over his body. It was becoming more difficult to exert his own will over himself. As if that wasn't bad enough, he kept slipping up. Sometimes he would have to remind himself of the obvious. Morgana’s origins as a cat, Yoshizawa's actual identity, the bitter fact that Kurusu had betrayed him in his time of need. No matter how much the world around him tried to make him forget this, he needed to hold on. He couldn't give in.

Almost as if to emphasize his betrayal, Akechi found Kurusu lost in the fantasy more often than not. He would almost pity the traitor if he hadn't brought all this on himself. Sometimes during his forced routine visits to LeBlanc, Akechi would see him wake up only to desperately try to return to his fake utopia. It was pathetic.

Sometimes on his days out Akechi would catch glimpses of Maruki. The bastard's smug grin as he watched all the "happy" people go by. Sometimes he would find his whole mood suddenly turned around, like a reverse rage spell but even more infuriating. At least when he was in a rage, nothing was trying to convince him his whole life was fake.

One night Akechi was alone in his apartment like always when Kurusu showed up without warning. He was sobbing and apologizing, as he should. Akechi let him in instead of slamming the door in his face like he wanted to.

"What's wrong?" He asked, the words forming without his permission. He already knew the answer. "Akira?"

Akechi would have cringed if he could. Akira, it sounded so wrong coming from him. Then again, every word that wasn't his own sounded wrong.

Kurusu continued to sob instead of answering the question. Of course the coward would avoid confrontation. The only reason Akechi wasn't showing his disgust was because he couldn't.

He ended up spending the night. It's not like Akechi could have asked him to leave even if he wanted to. As Kurusu slept peacefully on the couch, Akechi wondered if a fall from his apartment would be enough to take him out of this wretched reality. Several stories up should be enough, maybe he would be in the mood to experiment if he could ever move his body on his own again.

Seeing ~~Kurusu's~~ Akira's guilty face became more and more common. It seemed like the fantasy was unraveling around him. Not like Akechi cared much. He didn't want the traitor to be happy. Still, seeing him so guilt ridden did hurt on some level. 

Akechi had gotten more control over his body recently. Not as much as he'd like but it was a start. He was free to wander around his apartment but not much else. Sometimes he’d go to the window and contemplate jumping before he remembered he lived on the ground floor. Something about the realization always made his stomach churn for some reason. 

Normally his freedom was brief. It only lasted when he was alone in his apartment. Leaving almost always forced him into LeBlanc and visitors forced him right back into fantasy mode. It was usually Akira that interrupted his freedom at home. How fitting. Sometimes his traitorous mind would actually be happy to see him. Usually Akira would just talk to him about how things are as if he didn't already know. As if reality hadn't become boring and predictable.

Recently Akechi had noticed that he came in contact with ~~the thieves~~ Akira’s friends more. Normally he only saw them at LeBlanc when Akira had gathered them but now he was seeing them around Tokyo as if they were real people. 

The most jarring to see were Morgana and Yoshizawa. Looking at Morgana always made his mind scream that something about the ~~cat~~ boy was out of place but he could never identify it. Yoshizawa was even worse. Whenever he addressed ~~Sumire~~ Kasumi, he felt like there was something important he was forgetting.

Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him.

Some nights Akechi would lay on his bed and stare at the ceiling. Recently something in his chest felt like it was clawing to get out. Something in his heart would scream for him to fight. To wreak havoc on this fake world. In his dreams a voice, his own but not, would call out to him.

Lately Akechi couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. He could move and talk freely but it all felt indescribably wrong. In his heart, something screamed it was fake. He knew he was more free than before but somehow the idea seemed meaningless.

Akechi found himself craving the presence of others as of late. He often found himself wondering if his desires came from himself or some outside influence. Why had he been so reluctant to see everyone? When Akira invited him over, he never had a reason to say no. He always wanted to go. Sometimes he would see Wakaba Isshiki and blood would run cold. He never understood why.

Exhaustion became a constant in Akechi’s life. Every contradiction his mind pointed out only made it harder to escape the constant fog forming in his mind. He knew he was supposed to be doing something but he was too tired to remember. The voice in his dreams steadily grew quieter. He wouldn’t be surprised if one day it disappeared entirely.

Akira came to Akechi's apartment one night, sobbing and apologizing. The scene somehow felt familiar. He invited his friend inside and sat with him.

"What's wrong?" He asked gently. Something in the back of his mind screamed an answer he couldn’t understand. "Akira?"

The sound of his name only made ~~the traitor~~ Akira sob harder for some reason. As he looked at the pitiful sight it felt like something in his heart died. He hated seeing him like this.

That night Akira stayed, mumbling nonsense about a past that didn’t exist.

In the days following Akira's visit everything felt numb. Akechi felt like a shell of a person which wouldn't be an inaccurate way to describe his current state. He no longer dreamed, the strange voice and desire for chaos were forgotten. The hole in his heart was slowly filled with artificial joy. He'd be disgusted if he hadn’t lost the ability to fight a long time ago.

Akechi found himself spending most of his time with Akira and his friends. Maybe it would be more accurate to just call them his friends. It's not like they hadn't immediately accepted him into the group. In the back of his mind he knew Akira had something to do with all this but he couldn't bring himself to care. All he cared about was making the most of his time with his friends.

Life was ~~empty~~ perfect. Akechi couldn’t think of a better period in his life than when he met Akira and his friends, it was all he ever wanted. Akira was one of the best friends he could ask for. He was always so reliable, always there when Akechi needed him. ~~Not when he needed him most~~ That’s precisely why it hurt so much to see him in such a miserable state. A forced smile, guilt hidden behind the happy mask he wore, ~~it’s what he deserves~~ it was enough to break his heart. After all the ~~selfish~~ selfless effort Akira always put in to make others happy, he deserved ~~nothing~~ happiness as much as anyone else. Akechi wanted to help him in the same way Akira helped everyone around him. What else could he do for the person he owed so much to?


End file.
